This Thanksgiving when my family gathers around the table and it’s my turn to answer the question, “What Are You Thankful For? My response will be, “I’m thankful for Black Pastors.” I am going to say this because Black pastors do so much to enhance, improve, and sustain the quality of life for us all. They stand against racism and injustice, comfort us in times of sorrow, inspire us when we are down, feed us when we are hungry, clothe us when we are naked, and encourage us to be the best that we can be to the glory of God.
The significance of the role of Black pastors in the fight against racism and injustice was highlighted this past week in Brunswick, GA where three white men are standing trial for the 2020 killing of 25-year-old unarmed Black man Ahmaud Arbery. During the trial defense attorney Kevin Gough said, “We don’t want any more Black pastors coming in here.”
His statement was an attempt to ban Black pastors from the courtroom to adversely impact the outcome of the trial. But it was also a tacit admission of racism and the very reason that Black pastors and all who love justice are needed in the fight against the injustices aimed at African Americans.
His statement was also a reminder to me that I am grateful for Black Pastors. I thank God for Pastor Jamal Bryant, Pastor of the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, who issued a call for 100 Black pastors to join him at the Glynn County Court House in Brunswick, GA. I am grateful for the more than 500 pastors who heeded the call and showed up at the courthouse to form “A Wall of Prayer Against Racism and Injustice.” I am grateful for the Black pastors and faith leaders that throughout history have advocated for Black life. I am grateful for the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Sojourner Truth, Benjamin Elijah Mays, Mordecai Wyatt Johnson, Adam Clayton Powell Jr., and so many others.
I am grateful, not just for the black pastors and preachers of old, but I am also thankful for Black pastors and preachers of today. I am grateful for the Rev. Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner, the Rev. Dr. Otis Moss, III, Pastor Traci Blackmon, Pastor Michael McBride, and the Rev. CeCe Brown Davis who recently led a successful advocacy campaign to get Julius Jones off death row.
I thank God for all Black pastors and faith leaders who are on the battlefield fighting for truth and justice. I thank God for the full-time Black pastors and the part-time Black pastors. I thank God for the scholarly Black preachers and for jack-leg Black preachers. I thank God for the sermons that they preach, the prayers that they pray, and the songs that they sing.
This Thanksgiving, I’m thanking God for Black pastors and for all that they do all to make our world a better place. And if you’re a Black pastor or faith leader, then please accept my heartfelt thanks for helping to make our world a better place!
